


I'll See You When I See You

by Luvless34



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997), Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020), Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
Genre: F/M, Family, Family Fluff, Home, Homecoming, Romantic Soulmates, True Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-16 17:15:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,706
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29579436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Luvless34/pseuds/Luvless34
Summary: Cloud's been on the road a lot lately, and Tifa's made her peace with it. She tries to care for herself, but she wonders if Cloud sticking around is for real this time. After Cloud returned home from his stint with Geostigma and achieving a commune with her and the children, Tifa's finally smiling again and little does she know why Cloud's been leaving home so much.Just some good ole fluff for Cloti. One shot.
Relationships: Tifa Lockhart/Cloud Strife
Comments: 4
Kudos: 55





	I'll See You When I See You

Tifa opened her eyes when the sunlight streamed through the windows, filling her bedroom with a heavenly light. 

Almost immediately, the fighter started smiling once she remembered where she was. She was home at Seventh Heaven in Edge with her family. 

_ Her family _ . 

Just thinking about the word made Tifa light up brighter than any Materia, or the stars in the night sky. Somehow, emerging from the ruins of what Meteor created, was a family made up of herself, Marlene, Denzel, and…

Tifa blushed a faint pink as she thought about the one member of the family who recently made his return to Seventh Heaven, and she couldn’t be any happier about it. Even if others observed their mixed-matched unit out in public, she knew that they would see a young couple with their children. While they looked like any other family, it was what they felt that mattered the most. 

She slowly rose from bed, stretched and got herself ready for the day. Denzel and Marlene were spending the weekend over with Elmyra in Kalm, and so, it was a rarity for her to have the place to herself for the time being. There were days when Tifa would close down the bar because family time mattered to her, yet, the man who shared her bed wasn’t there that morning. 

She put on a grey t-shirt with black shorts and headed downstairs while wearing some fuzzy slippers, wondering if Cloud had to go somewhere in the middle of the night. It wasn’t too unusual for him to try and tackle some deliveries earlier so that he’d be home at a decent hour. Though, when he first started doing that, Tifa admittedly got a little lonely while she slept alone. But, he’s been taking on so many routes lately that she was worried that he’d wear himself out. 

_ “Don’t worry about it,” Cloud said one night. “I’ll be home before you know it.” _

_ “It’s not that...it’s just, I wish you could take some time for yourself,” Tifa said. “We’re not tight on money right now, so I don’t understand why you’re needing to take on so many new deliveries.” _

The bar and restaurant was silent as Tifa yawned and made her way to get herself some tea. Her carmine eyes spotted a white piece of paper folded and placed out on the counter. Tifa curiously opened it up and found it was scrawled hastily inside of it:

_ Tifa,  _

_ There was a last minute delivery pick-up out in Rocket Town. Sorry I’m not gonna be back for a little while.  _

_ Cloud  _

Tifa scanned the message to see if there was anything else, and found a small little postscript near the end of the note:  _ P.S. I’ll pick up the phone this time.  _ Instead of frowning like she would in the past, Tifa smiled. She was at peace with her relationship with Cloud, no matter how confusing it could be at times. 

The fact that he left a note this time so she wouldn’t worry made her warm inside. There were little improvements and efforts that Cloud took to make sure he could show her that he did indeed care about them and their home they’re building together. 

“I guess I’ll see you, when I see you,” Tifa said to herself softly. Though she didn’t feel any resentment or sadness that Cloud left for the next several days. His routes increasingly grew more complicated and busier since he returned from his bout of Geostigma and leaving self-quarantine at the Sector 5 Church. 

Over the years, the fighter learned how to be OK when Cloud wasn’t around and that she was more than capable of being able to care for herself. 

So that’s what Tifa decided to do. She went to the stove and placed a tea kettle on one of the burners and filled it with water from the sink. She then raised the heat, watching the flames flicker underneath the kettle. 

  
  


When Cloud left Seventh Heaven for all those months, Tifa wondered if it was something about her that failed him. But, she grew to accept that Cloud had his own demons he needed to put to bed and that she herself needed to accept things about herself that she couldn’t embrace before. 

Turning up the radio that sat on the counter, Tifa started dancing alone in the middle of the bar. She spun around like a ballerina, and her long black hair shimmered in the sunlight like satin ribbon. There were so many things that Tifa couldn’t indulge in before because of her past like taking a moment to breathe and feel normal. Now, she was able to and it felt glorious. 

The fighter sang along to the music as the tea kettle whistled, signaling to her that it was ready to make tea. 

Tifa quietly made herself a cup of tea with rosehip, dried blooms that were lovingly packed and gifted to her by Elmyra a few weeks ago. She gathered and collected seeds from Aerith’s garden at the Sector 5 Church and started drying them to sell. However, when Tifa was going through her own personal struggles, Elmyra was there with a sky blue tea tin filled with rosehips. 

_ A good cup of tea always calms the mind and the heart,  _ Elmyra told her.  _ There’s an old saying that if you make rosehip tea, the flower holds the memories of the person who grew them.  _

“Guess you’re still here for me, aren’t you Aerith?” Tifa asked aloud, a sad smile appearing at corners of her lips. “I know you’re watching over me. Wish you were here.”

Slowly, Tifa started pouring the hot water into a tea mug and let the blooms steep in the water. The liquid started turning a beautiful golden color and the fragrant scent made Tifa relax and think of a perennial spring. After letting her cup cool down and taking the first sip, Tifa’s mind started floating elsewhere. 

Cloud wouldn’t tell her, but she knew he liked sweet things and despite him claiming to eat anything of hers, she wanted to make something that would be nostalgic for him. Maybe, enough for him to see them living together as a real home he’d return to after each delivery. 

“It’d be...nice to bake something today,” Tifa told herself. “Maybe I’ll go to the market and see if there’s something I can scrounge up.”

So, that’s what she decided to do. Tifa laced up her sneakers and headed out the door into the spring morning. People from all over Edge were already out and about, and to Tifa, it was like she could actually see what was happening around her instead of being in a noiseless blur. 

Families of different types were walking down the streets together, laughing full-bellied laughs. There were young couples holding hands and drinking coffee from their paper cups. Children were running after each other, teasing about racing each other. 

Tifa smiled at the sights and breathed deeply. When Geostigma was put to rest, Edge came back to life. It was as if the rest of the world was resurrected and experienced a rebirth. There were no more second chances, and she knew more than anyone that she needed to make these days count. 

When she reached the marketplace, there were vendors already out in full force of frying street foods and boiling noodles. Some talented artisans made art from the scrap metal from the ruins of Midgar and crafted mini sculptures and figurines of different creatures like chocobos, phoenixes, and even dragons. 

Eventually, Tifa made it to the vendor who sold flour, sugar and other types of ingredients that would help her make some pastries and treats. They were priced slightly high, but Tifa knew how much of a luxury it was to have a treat like this, and with some hope, she was thinking that she could have some type of treats for Cloud ready and maybe store some away so that the children would have something to look forward to when they came back home in a few days. 

“Hello Tifa!” The vendor called out. It was Marle, Tifa’s former landlady of Stargazer Heights. After evacuating community members from the slums, the old lady eventually moved out to Edge and avoided the worst of Geostigma. She never got sick, but ended up having to see many of her old friends and neighbors succumb to the illness. 

Now, she worked at the marketplace as a vendor. Presumably to keep her mind off the old lives they used to live, and to keep moving forward with the time she was gifted. 

“Hey there, Marle,” Tifa nodded. She was handed a basket for her to start carrying ingredients as she shopped around. After picking out a few eggs, a glass bottle of fresh milk, flour, eggs, goat butter and sugar, Tifa was looking at some of the newly offered spices that might tempt the senses. 

“You know, I got some vanilla extract imported from Costa del Sol right here,” Marle said. She pulled out some vials for Tifa to take a whiff, and the fragrant warm smell filled her nostrils. “I’m guessing this oughta be a special treat for a certain someone, so I’ll give you half-price for it.”

“What gave it away?” Tifa asked, as she started laughing. “Well, Cloud is coming home later and I wanted to have something waiting for him.”

“You’re too good for him, Tifa,” Marle said, shaking her hair. “You don’t know how many customers are snooping around here seeking info on you and your...status.”

“Well, it’s no one’s business,” Tifa replied gently. “But, I’m just happy to have Cloud home.”

“What exactly are you going to be making for him anyway?” Marle asked curiously. “This is quite the haul you got here. Pretty sure there aren’t any holidays that I’m aware of. Is it his birthday?”

“Nope, neither,” Tifa said. “More of a…’just because’ kind of treat.”

“Wow, in that case…” Marle looked around her carefully before handing a package to Tifa. She grew puzzled, but then saw that the vendor had snuck in some fresh wildberries. “Got these fresh from Nibelheim. I thought you might like them and so got these in this morning.”

Something in Tifa’s memories clicked upon seeing Marle’s offering of wildberries. Something stored away in her memories and her heart. It was then Tifa started putting together the pieces of what exactly she’d like to bake for Cloud that day. 

“How did you know?” Tifa asked softly. “How much are these?”

“How much are what?” Marle asked, though she winked at Tifa, meaning that she didn’t want to charge her for this priceless gift. 

“Thank you, Marle.”

“Any time.” Marle waved to Tifa as she finished paying for her ingredients and took her prized fruits with her. 

* * *

Back at Seventh Heaven, Tifa started making wildberry cake. After tying her long hair back, washing her hands in the sink and tying a light cream colored apron around herself, she was ready to get working on her treat for Cloud. She measured out the dry and wet ingredients separately and whisked them together slowly, folding creams over and adding flavorings. 

Soon enough, Tifa poured her batter into a buttered greased pan and slid it into a hot oven. She wiped her brow, and smiled. She was excited to share something she created. There was a little sadness thinking about how her mother taught her everything about cooking and baking. 

The air started smelling beautifully fragrant and enticing. Tifa’s mouth watered, thinking about wanting a slice herself. Yet, she wanted to have it ready for Cloud and share in it together. 

“I wonder how he’s doing?” Tifa asked herself. “I hope he’s safe--”

“I’m home.”

Tifa suddenly turned around and saw that Cloud stood in the entryway. His blonde hair messier than usual, and his mako-blue eyes were glowing as he stared at Tifa who tried to get over the shock. 

“Cloud! What are you doing here so soon?”

“I got my route done sooner than I expected,” he replied quietly. “It was just a pick-up.”

“Well, welcome back.” Tifa smiled as she went around the counter and poured Cloud some hot tea. “You must be tired. Why don’t you take a bath and get yourself settled? We can catch up later--”

“Actually, there’s something that I wanted to talk to you about.” Cloud interrupted. He motioned for Tifa to sit down on the barstool. Confused, she obliged and took a seat next to him. Cloud seemed to be deep in thought about something, which normally wouldn’t throw Tifa off that much. 

Yet, this seemed serious.

“Before I do, I want to share something with you.” Tifa said, quickly rising from the barstool. She ran around and pulled out the cake she was baking from the oven. Cloud’s eyes widened at the freshly baked cake that smelled like wild berries and cream. 

“Tifa...did you bake that for me?” Cloud seemed speechless. “That’s…”

“Wildberry cake,” Tifa said softly. “Your mom’s recipe.”

Cloud stared at the pastry before looking up at Tifa. “How did you--”

“Well, when I was young, your mom invited me over to make some cakes with her after my mama died,” Tifa said while cutting Cloud a piece. “I had to sneak over because Papa didn’t want me to hang around you...but he never said anything about your mom.”

Tifa smiled sadly as she set the plate down in front of Cloud. “It was one of the best memories I had of her when I was able to remember things from the old days. I guess...I was missing home a little bit and thought that maybe...this could make this place feel more like home for you.”

“But, this place has always been home.” Cloud looked apologetic. “I’m sorry Tifa, I didn’t mean to make you feel like it wasn’t for me.”

“That’s not important,” Tifa said, waving her hands. “C’mon...let’s eat this.”

The two silently ate their cake, the juice from the berries dribbled over the fluffy white merengue and yellow sponge cake. It was perfect. 

“What was it that you wanted to tell me?” Tifa asked, slowly licking off the little bit of icing from her fork. “You sounded pretty serious for a second.”

“Well...you know that delivery?” Cloud asked. Tifa nodded. “That pick-up item...it was for you actually.”

Tifa’s eyes furrowed in confusion. “I didn’t order anything, though?”

“I know. I did.”

Cloud slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. Tifa grew puzzled at it as he silently finished eating his cake. He casually slid it over to her, and Tifa opened it, revealing a small ring with a gold band and a small pearl as the center stone. 

“Cloud...this is…”

He silently reached over and removed the ring from the box. Tifa tried to keep herself from fainting, but her heart was beating rapidly against her chest. Cloud quietly slid the ring onto her ring finger, prompting the fighter to start leaking tears from her ruby eyes. 

“I just thought...you’d like to have this,” Cloud said. “I’ve been thinking about it and thought that...this is our home and something was missing to make this new part of our lives perfect. That’s why I’ve been going on the road a lot lately. It was pretty expensive, and so I started saving up and taking on more routes. I’m sorry that I haven’t been home a lot. This was the reason why.”

“Cloud…” Tifa started crying. “Is this...is this really---”

“If you want it to be,” Cloud said quietly. “Only if you want it to be.”

“What about you?” Tifa asked in a near whisper. “Is this what you want it to be?”

There was a long pause between the two of them, yet Cloud’s eyes never left Tifa’s. Somehow, without saying it, Cloud told her everything she needed to hear and then some.

This no longer felt like a separation, but an anticipated reunion. She knew that Cloud would come back to her always, and this time, Tifa would be waiting to welcome him home. 


End file.
